Victims of the Christchurch terrorist attack are to receive a further donation from Victim Support.
The organisation announced today it will be giving out $655,890 as lump sum cash payments to victims on the official police list.
The funds are made up of unsolicited donations the organisation has continued to receive since the attacks, despite closing its appeal last year, and un-used contingency funds.
Kevin Tso, chief executive of Victim Support, says unsolicited donations have continued to trickle in since the fund’s closure in June last year.
“Victim Support is committed to distributing 100 per cent of funds raised to the victims. As we reach the end of our 2019/20 financial year, and tally what has accumulated, now is the appropriate time to distribute these extra funds to victims and uphold this commitment,” says Mr Tso.
The organisation says it is guided by the comprehensive consultation it undertook with victims in 2019 when giving out the money.
The meeting was held on World Blood Donor Day to highlight how critical the service is. (Source: Other)
“The distribution reflects the priorities expressed to us by victims at that time,” says Mr Tso.
“As such, all victims on the police victim list will receive a share of the additional funds in proportion to the total 2019 payments.”
Of those on the list, Victim Support says six victims have been shifted from the injured to present categories by police since earlier payments were made.
Victim Support says it will not seek reimbursement from those people, nor will it make a further payment to them.
“These changes reflect no ill intention on the part of these victims, only the inherent complexity of defining injuries throughout the investigative process,” says Mr Tso.
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